I bought this set of mini Distress Inks a while ago. They make a great palette; bright, warm colours with a vivid contrasting blue. I used them in a card I made recently when interviewing for a job with a cardmaking magazine (I didn’t get the job unfortunately, but I’m still quite pleased with the card). I used them to colour some thick paper which I then die cut and embossed to make the petals of a flower. It was a good excuse to use some of my many embossing folders.

Then I got a bit of an acrylic paint habit (nothing serious, just one or two whenever I visit a craft shop). Now that I’ve got acrylic paints to match, I felt like pairing them up and seeing what I could create. They cried out to be used as a sunset, of course. I revisited a batik-style technique, using wax on canvas to mask some areas, and used the Distress Inks watered down to give the first layer.

Then I got messy with the paint. I love the effect of flicked paint drops, it makes a piece look more dynamic and interesting – but it does tend to end up with me covered in paint. Ah well. I think it was worth it.